1. Missouri is a decent program and all, but it has some work to do to be a contender in the SEC

At 5:03 p.m., reality descended on Williams-Brice Stadium. That’s the moment Ace Sanders reached up and plucked a Connor Shaw pass out of the air to give South Carolina a commanding three-score lead just 24 seconds before halftime in a game the Gamecocks would easily win, 31-10, against Missouri.

The Tigers were hit with what must have felt like the weight of the dense, all-consuming fog that rolls off the Missouri River. The preseason hopes of competing for the SEC East title in their first season in the nation’s best league, however far-fetched they might have been, completely vanished with a catch that gave the Gamecocks an insurmountable lead.

And hope didn’t just disappear because the Tigers lost, but because of the way they lost. With their first SEC game, against Georgia, it was possible to watch and think that, with a couple of breaks, the outcome might have been different. Had the Tigers not turned the ball over repeatedly in their own end, or had they found a way to at least slow down Jarvis Jones, they could have had an opportunity to win that game.

His Tigers generated just 255 yards of offense—and 75 of those came on their final drive, long after the Gamecocks took out their starters. Their defense—either the scheme or the execution—included a giant bubble of safety for garnet-wearing receivers in the middle of the field.

2. South Carolina quarterback Connor Shaw is perfect—for the Gamecocks

Shaw completed 20 of his 21 passes in the game and although only one of them was of the left-handed shuffle variety to a wide-open receiver, at least a half-dozen others could have been. Shaw has spent most of this season either hurt or struggling, though that seemed hard to believe while watching him dissect the Missouri secondary.

“He got off to a slow start, he missed his first one, I think,” South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier said, with tongue planted firmly in cheek. “He was sensational today.”

His pass to Sanders was perfectly lofted over the Missouri defender whom Sanders had beaten off the line, and it was an indication that the South Carolina offense can be more than just workhorse tailback Marcus Lattimore.

In their only other game against a BCS squad, the Gamecocks threw for just 67 yards against Vanderbilt. This time, Shaw made good passes but better decisions—he exploited that cushion in the Missouri defense early and often. The Lattimore/Cunningham duo combined for 11 receptions for 101 yards.

“I kept hitting Marcus and Justice (Cunningham) underneath,” Shaw said. “They were going to dare us to throw short and run the ball, so that’s what we did.”

3. Sanders is ace in the hole

Sanders’ touchdown started the scoring action, but it wasn’t the play that left every one of the 80,836 fans at Williams-Brice Stadium with dropped jaws.

His 49-yard punt return early in the second quarter was a thing of beauty—he shook off at least four would-be tacklers, ran into teammate Damario Jeffery, juked past a few more defenders and was finally pushed out of bounds on the Missouri 1-yard line.

“I just bounced off (Jeffery), and he actually helped pick off another dude,” Sanders said with a laugh. “It was just him being in the wrong place, but it was the right time. It helped free me up a little more, and I just did the rest with my feet.”

Sanders finished with 106 yards on six punt returns, a very welcome sight for a team that’s struggled for years to produce consistent gains in the return game. Add Bruce Ellington’s 50-yard return near the end of the first half—the return that set up Sanders’ touchdown catch, by the way—and the reality is, the return game can be an asset, too.

4. When in doubt, give it to Lattimore

And, though he didn’t touch the ball on Sanders’ touchdown, Lattimore impacted that play, too. There’s a reason Sanders was matched up one-on-one on the right side—Missouri had to keep defenders inside to account for Lattimore, who already had two touchdown runs in the first half. He should have had three, though.

After a massive 11-play, 78-yard drive—which included a negated touchdown run from Shaw and a couple of offensive penalties—left the Gamecocks on the Missouri 1-yard line, Spurrier ignored Lattimore.

He called Shaw’s number on keepers, twice, and twice the Tigers stuffed the quarterback to keep the game scoreless.

The next time the Gamecocks moved inside the Missouri 5, Spurrier dumped the bag of tricks. He gave the ball twice to Lattimore and Lattimore delivered the touchdown. After a Missouri fumble and 36-yard completion from Shaw to Nick Jones put the ball on the 1 again, Lattimore again got the call and punched it in for a touchdown that put USC ahead 14-0.

Inside the red zone, Lattimore is nearly automatic.

That’s a reality that descended upon Williams-Brice long before 5:03 p.m. Saturday.